Hermione's Ways
by Sw0tv0st0k
Summary: Hermione is changing, but is it really for the best? R/R PLEASE!!!! NOW!


Chapter One - End of Year  
  
"Hey, who's that guy over there?" Ron nudged Hermione who was sitting smartly on his left.  
  
"Ouch!" Hermione whispered, annoyed, rubbing her elbow. She looked over to where Ron was pointing.  
  
"No, not him," Ron said pointedly. "Him - the one with the brown hair."  
  
Hermione saw him. She recognised him - he had only been at Hogwart's for about a year. Nobody had ever talked to him because he was new. His hair was a medium shade of brown. It lay flat on his head. And he had glasses. But she didn't know his name - it was Gregory, or Frederick, or something of the sort. She knew he had done pretty well in his school work so far, he had a keen interest in journalism, and he was a member of Ravenclaw House.  
  
"I don't know," she responded.  
  
Ron, Hermione and Harry were sitting along the middle row of benches in Charms. While Professor Flitwick rambled on about the dangers of illness charms, the three friends weren't listening in the slightest. They were too busy discussing other matters.  
  
"When's the last Quidditch match with Slytherin this year?" Ron asked Harry.  
  
"On Thursday," Harry replied in a whisper. "Malfoy better not try any more enchantments on my broomstick or the Bludgers or anything else that might affect the match. I've had enough of his supposed revenge, and Madame Hooch has had enough of his scheming ways. I don't know why he doesn't just quit it and play a smooth game."  
  
"Because he's thick as mud," Hermione replied simply. "He doesn't know what's good for him."  
  
"Was that a threat?" Ron asked, trying to hide a smirk.  
  
"He's looking for trouble, and he's going to get it at this rate," Hermione said coolly. "Either from a student or a teacher."  
  
Harry and Ron looked at each other, a smile forming on their lips.  
  
"And it might be from me if I become Head Girl," Hermione added. Now Harry and Ron remembered - there was to be an assembly the next day in which all the Year Sixes attended and the prefects and Head Boy and Head Girl were picked.  
  
"Excuse me -" Professor Flitwick said, and coughed to gain the attention of Harry, Ron and Hermione. The whole class looked to where his gaze was fixed. Hermione elbowed Ron to stop laughing. "That will be five points from Gryffindor, I'm afraid," the little man said, shaking his head in disappointment. "I expected more from you, and especially you Miss Granger. But these matters cannot be ignored."  
  
Hermione looked disgusted. She had lost five points from Gryffindor! She spent the rest of the lesson working harder than ever, her frustration building up even more as Harry and Ron swapped Chocolate Frog cards under the table.  
  
As the students piled out of the classroom at the end, Hermione walked on ahead of the others, eager to get to Potions on time and determined to make up for the points lost. Although Snape wasn't one for giving points to Gryffindor (he had never given them any points at all from Hermione's recollection), she felt it was worth a try.  
  
She was rushing so fast that when Harry and Ron called her she spun round, almost knocking herself over. As it happens, she knocked someone else over as she saw books soaring into the air.  
  
"I'm so sorry," she apologised, helping to pick up the books. She looked up. It was that Ravenclaw boy they had talked about earlier. His glasses were lying on the floor. "Occulus repairo!" Hermione muttered, fixing them in a matter of seconds. She handed them back to him. She had never noticed but he had sapphire-blue eyes. They glowed somehow. Like they weren't real. But obviously, they were.  
  
"Thank you," he said, embarrassed, delicately accepting the glasses back.  
  
"I didn't realise you had blue eyes," she said out loud, staring into them and admiring the beauty of them. He put the glasses back on. "I'm sorry, I don't know your name!" she said.  
  
"Graham Hollingwood," he replied, also taking his books from her. They stood up.  
  
"I'm -"  
  
"Hermione Granger," he interrupted. "Yes I know. I wish I was as good as you at everything."  
  
Hermione smiled, quite flattered. "Oh, it's nothing really. It's not all it's cracked up to be!" she said modestly, but she couldn't stop herself smiling. Yes, I am clever for my age, she thought to herself.  
  
"Well it was nice bumping into you Hermione," Graham said, and then he walked off calmly, trailing the rest of his classmates.  
  
"Oh, Hermione, what's the hurry?" Harry called, flustered. "Why are you so eager to get to Potions, of all lessons?"  
  
"Blue eyes -" Hermione replied distantly, still staring at the spot where Graham had disappeared down the corridor.  
  
Ron sniggered. Harry punched him. "Hermione? HERMIONE!"  
  
"Oh I er . . . yes let's get to Potions . . . I . . . suppose -"  
  
But she was still completely spellbound.  
  
Potions was just as bad as ever. Snape was dropping hints that none of the Gryffindors would be chosen to be Head Boy or Head Girl. Hermione was quite angry, but she was still keen on trying her best at answering all the questions, and getting her Floating Potion exactly right.  
  
"We'll be getting our exam results in the assembly tomorrow as well," Ron explained to Harry. "I hope they don't get read out."  
  
"Shh!" Hermione warned them, as Snape wandered around in their general direction.  
  
After the lesson, Hermione had neither lost nor gained points, but Harry and Ron inevitably had lost ten points between them for talking. This made Hermione more flustered than ever. What was the point in her trying extra hard if they were going to let her down? They all trudged to the Great Hall for dinner.  
  
Harry and Ron discussed Quidditch while Hermione ate as much as she could in as little time as she could, in order to get to the Common Room and finish all her assignments. She had gathered that if she did this well enough, she would at last gain the points she wanted. To make up for her losing them in the first place.  
  
Ron told her it was pointless. Harry agreed. Hermione ignored them, and marched off to the warm Gryffindor Common Room.  
  
The whole room was quiet and empty when she arrived, but there was a fire blazing in the hearth and she seated herself on the table nearest to it so that she could warm up and get comfortable. She managed to finish at least one piece of homework before Harry and Ron arrived to play Wizard's Chess.  
  
The next lesson was Defence Against the Dark Arts, which Hermione also tried hard through and actually did obtain five points, but she refused to let that stop her gaining more. She still had to make up for the points Harry and Ron had lost!  
  
After the lesson she went straight to her Common Room and wrote some more. Harry had to go out for Quidditch practice so Ron stayed behind and also joined in the homework frenzy. He'd never find any more time for it otherwise. There was neither speaking nor communicating involved in the first hour or so. Then, as she quite rarely did, she stopped and looked at Ron.  
  
"Ron?" she said, gaining his immediate attention. "Do you really think I'll get in for Head Girl?"  
  
It was the first time she had mentioned that she was, indeed, aiming for that post.  
  
Ron smiled at her, secretly surprised at her modesty. "Of course. No doubt about it," he replied shortly.  
  
Hermione looked as though she was pondering something for a while, and then got back on with her work. Ron followed suit.  
  
* * *  
  
"Could all year sixes make their way to the Great Hall immediately," Professor MacGonagall's voice boomed from nowhere in particular.  
  
Hermione was already dressed and waiting for that announcement to be made. She had already brushed her hair, brushed her teeth twice, finished all her assignments and magically ironed her robes to perfection. She jumped off her bed as soon as the word sixes had registered in her brain, and darted off down the stairs to the Gryffindor Common Room.  
  
Harry and Ron were still groggy after getting out of bed at half past six that morning. Ron had yet to notice that his shoes were on the wrong feet.  
  
"Don't forget your hats," Hermione reminded them as she marched smartly out of the room, leaving the boys to sort themselves out.  
  
It came as no surprise to Dumbledore that Hermione was the first person to arrive in the Great Hall on this particular occasion. Inwardly, he smiled a very content and amused smile.  
  
It took approximately five minutes and forty seven seconds for everyone to arrive and settle down onto benches. Hermione was very restless and rather frustrated that people couldn't at least make the effort to arrive on time. She had expected far more people to turn up but then, she thought, it was only the year sixes that were present.  
  
"Silence in the Hall please!" Professor MacGonagall called, clapping her hands together once. She took a seat on the right hand of Dumbledore, and he stood up.  
  
"I expect you'll know why you have been summoned here so early in the morning," he said in that hoarse but grand way of his. "First we will inform you of your end of year test results, and then we will move onto revealing who will be in place of Head Boy, Head Girl" - Hermione smiled broadly to herself - "Deputy Head Boy and Deputy Head Girl, and also the Prefects."  
  
There was a slight murmur in the room but it was hushed up and Argus Filch brought in the Sorting Hat on its stool. It was jabbering, "Thank you kind sir, much appreciated. Just put me down here. I think this will be a very fine spot." Filch put it down roughly and stalked off with his precious cat Mrs Norris.  
  
The Great Hall fell silent.  
  
Dumbledore clapped his hands the way MacGonagall had earlier, and rolled up envelopes adorned with ribbons floated out from behind him and swooped all over the hall to their right owners. The ribbons were red for Gryffindor, green for Slytherin, blue for Ravenclaw and yellow for Hufflepuff.  
  
"You may open them," Dumbledore boomed over the din of excited students.  
  
Hermione ripped her envelope into little pieces while trying to get at the parchment inside. Her results were immaculate, as usual. That didn't stop her excitement however. Ron's had not been so generous.  
  
"How come you got 108 for Transfiguration?" he asked, bewildered.  
  
"I just happen to be better than you at that subject," Hermione replied.  
  
"And Charms, and Herbology, and Defence Against the Dark Arts, and in fact, every other subject. Ah! Everything but Flying!"  
  
Hermione looked crushed. "Yes, but I did my best!" she assured him. She sat back down beside Harry. "How were your scores?" she asked him.  
  
"Abysmal beside yours," he said, looking slightly glum.  
  
"What's that supposed to mean?" Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"That you just happen to be better at everything than everyone."  
  
"Oh," Hermione replied, calming down again.  
  
"And now, the Sorting Hat will announce the Prefects for the next year at Hogwart's," Dumbledore announced, regaining silence.  
  
Hermione hardly realised what the Sorting Hat was saying, partly because she didn't care and mainly because she'd spotted him. Graham Hollingwood was sitting at the end of the Ravenclaw House bench. He was clapping his hands with the other people in the Hall, watching as some students took a stance at the front of the Hall, claiming their Prefect badges. He just happened to turn his gaze towards Hermione after a little while, and waved at her, slightly embarrassed.  
  
Hermione checked herself. She waved back.  
  
"And now for the Head Boy and Head Girl!" The Sorting Hat called. Hermione's attention dragged away from her Ravenclaw crush. If her name had already been called out, she hadn't been listening . . .  
  
AN: Please tell me what you think. Very much appreciated. Thanks!!!!!!!!!! 


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